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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04.16.21 Newsletter DATE: April 16, 2021 TO: Honorable Mayor and Common Council FROM: Mark Rohloff, City Manager SUBJECT: Weekly Newsletter 1. 2021-2022 STRATEGIC PLAN DASHBOARD GOES LIVE: The City’s Strategic Plan outlines our vision, mission and priorities for the future! The Dashboard is a public-facing system that displays real-time information about our Strategic Plan as well as Key Performance Indicators (KPI). The information displayed has been designed to help inform the public of our goals, how they align with the Strategic Plan, and the steps that are being taken to achieve them. Look for our first quarter update at the next Council meeting, and in the meantime, check out the real-time data at: https://performance.envisio.com/dashboard/oshkosh943. 2. ELECTRIC SCOOTER REGULATION: At the Council Meeting on Tuesday evening a gentleman spoke regarding the regulation of electric scooters. In his remarks he indicated that he had seen a proposal from the City Attorney’s office. That is not correct. While the City Attorney’s office is currently working on a draft ordinance, the draft has not been finalized and has not been shared at this point. The draft will be reviewed with the Police, Transportation, Parks and Community Development departments. After that review, staff plans to bring a final proposed draft ordinance forward within the next month. In 2019 the legislature passed a state law legalizing the use of electric scooters on roadways, sidewalks, bicycle lanes and bicycle ways. The same law allowed municipalities to restrict or prohibit their use on sidewalks and roads with speed limits in excess of 25 miles per hour and to restrict or prohibit the short term commercial rental of scooters to the general public. Based upon the changes to the state law, staff brought the issue to the Traffic and Parking Advisory Board and the Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Board. Both Boards recommended prohibiting electric scooters on roads with speed limits faster than 25 mph and both also recommended prohibiting their use on sidewalks. The Traffic Review Board then recommended a complete prohibition on commercial rental systems while the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board recommended the City develop a pilot program to determine whether commercial rental would be feasible and not create safety or other concerns. The draft being worked on by the Attorney’s office would prohibit the use of electric scooters on roads with speed limits faster than 25 mph and on sidewalks as recommended by the two advisory boards. The draft would allow for commercial rental through a pilot program. 3. CEAPE AVENUE RECONSTRUCTION BEGINS: The reconstruction of Ceape Avenue (project 21-05), the second of the 2021 street reconstruction projects, will be underway soon. The general contractor for the project is Jossart Brothers, Inc. Jossart plans to begin construction the week of April 19th. Advanced warning signs have been placed prior to the closure. The work under this project is to reconstruct Ceape Avenue from Bowen Street to Lake Street. Sanitary sewer and laterals, water main and laterals, and storm sewer and laterals will be installed, replaced, or repaired, as needed, prior to placing new concrete pavement. Electrical work and new sidewalk will be installed within the Project limits, and new concrete driveway aprons will be constructed. If you wish to sign up for e-mailed construction updates for Contract 21-05, please send a blank e-mail to contract2105-subscribe@lists.ci.oshkosh.wi.us. You will receive an e-mail stating your subscription request has been received. You must reply to the message within five (5) days to complete the subscription. If you have any questions, please contact Construction Management Supervisor, Mike Blank. 4. 2021 HOUSING STUDY COMMENCES: The City of Oshkosh has contracted with RDG Consulting and Design to conduct a city wide housing study. The results of this Housing Study will help elected officials, City staff, stakeholders, and community members discern the local housing market and understand key housing issues and how they impact the City of Oshkosh. It will also serve as a platform for strategy and policy decisions. The report is intended to offer a basis for formulating specific housing priorities, policy options, intervention strategies, and allocation of resources. Staff and the consultants have identified stakeholders to participate in listening sessions and serve on the Technical Stakeholder Team. Stakeholders represent a wide range of parties that will provide input for the study including developers, educators, neighborhood members, seniors and special service providers and more. The Technical Stakeholder Team held their first session on April 8th with plans to continue meeting as the study progresses. If you have any questions please contact Planning Services Manager Mark Lyons at (920) 2360-5059. Updates can also be viewed on the project website at http://www.oshkoshhousing2021.com/. 5. COVID-19 TEMPORARY OUTDOOR SEATING AREAS: The Planning Services Division has extended COVID-19 Temporary Outdoor Seating Permits through October 1, 2021. These permits were first made available in May, 2020 to allow food and drink establishments to provide temporary outdoor seating during the COVID-19 pandemic with relaxed approval requirements. The permits were originally valid through October 1, 2020 and were later extended through April 30, 2021. The permits have now been extended through October 1, 2021 to continue to provide outdoor dining options during the COVID-19 pandemic. For additional information, please contact Planner, Brian Slusarek or Associate Planner/Zoning Administrator, Todd Muehrer at 920-236-5059. 6. OPD ADDS A NEW TEAM MEMBER: On Thursday, April 1, 2021, the Oshkosh Police Department welcomed Community Service Officer Andrew Marsh to the Team. Andrew Marsh is originally from Brandon, Wisconsin, and is currently enrolled in the Criminal Justice program at Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton. Prior to becoming a Community Service Officer with the Oshkosh Police Department, Andrew was employed at the Piggly Wiggly in Waupun. Congratulations and Welcome to the OPD Team Andrew! 7. RELAY APP UPDATE AND OUTREACH: In 2019, the Oshkosh Police Department launched a new phone app called Relay. This app is free for citizens to use and allows them to report non-emergency incidents directly from their phones to the Police Department. When citizens submit an incident to officers to investigate, they can also include a photo, which helps to provide additional information about the suspect, suspect vehicle or the scene of the criminal activity. After reporting an incident, they will receive updates from the officer that handles the Relay message. For the past several months, OPD has been visiting local businesses to show them the app and also to discuss the Broadcast feature. The Broadcast feature allows citizens to get information about active incidents that are taking place in the City. Past Broadcasts have included information such as: Missing people; road closures due to accidents; criminal activity; and area hazards. We recently posted a Relay video on our social media accounts featuring the General Manager from the Hilton Garden Inn, staff from Visit Oshkosh, as well as staff from the Business Improvement District. The Relay app is another way for the Oshkosh Police Department to stay connected with the community as we work together to build a better Oshkosh! 8. REPORTS ATTACHMENTS UPDATES AND LINKS: Attached please find the Spring edition of forwardHR, a publication of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) with an interview with City Manager Rohloff (see page 12), and below is the link to OFD’s Monthly Hot Topics Newsletter: https://www.ci.oshkosh.wi.us/Fire/Hot_Topics.aspx 9. MEETING MINUTES FOR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS: All meeting minutes are uploaded to the website upon approval. Please follow the link below for the most updated information & meeting minutes: https://onboard.ci.oshkosh.wi.us/. 10. COVID-19 RESOURCE LINKS AND INFORMATION: o Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:  https://www.cdc.gov/ o Wisconsin Department of Health Services:  https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/ o Winnebago County Public Health Department:  https://www.co.winnebago.wi.us/health/divisions-program- areas/communicable-disease/covid-19-coronavirus/wchd-covid-19-situation 11. UPCOMING MEETINGS: Among the meetings I have scheduled for the week of April 19 include the following: At 8:30 AM on Monday, I will be doing my monthly interview with Bob Burnell on WOSH radio. At 10:00 AM I am meeting with Parks Director Maurer to discuss the planned four-season building at a Lakeshore Park. At 10:00 AM on Tuesday I will be participating in a virtual WCMA Summer Conference Planning Session. At Noon I will be participating in the annual Council Re-organizational meeting. As a reminder, as we are still practicing safety procedures and social distancing, we ask that you do not invite guests at this time. If you would like to get photos with family and friends on the dais please contact Diane to make arrangements for you to access the council chambers at another time. On Wednesday at 1:00 PM I am meeting with WPS representatives to discuss potential future projects. At 3:00 PM I am attending a virtual GOEDC meeting. On Thursday at 9:30 AM I will be doing the introductions and welcome message for the informational session on Housing Loans and Incentives offered throughout the city of Oshkosh. This is a virtual event, please see the attached press release for more information and instructions on how to attend virtually. At 1:30 PM I will be attending a virtual GOEDC meeting. If you have any questions regarding my schedule, please contact me.